ECI stands for ‘Erasing Citizens of India’: CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar

The Communist Party of India on Monday slammed the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the alleged irregularities, manipulations, arbitrary deletions, and additions reported from electoral rolls across the country.

CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said that the much-hyped press conference of the ECI turned out to be a damp squib and answered none of the questions raised by the Opposition.

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“The Election Commission of India (ECI) today functions less as a constitutional authority and more as an institution for ‘Erasing Citizens of India’, betraying its mandate to safeguard democracy,” he said.

Doubling down on the “vote theft” allegations leveled by the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, the CPI MP said, “The scale of electoral fraud is shocking. From hundreds of voters registered in a single small room to the infamous ‘House No. 0’ cases in Bihar and Karnataka, the evidence is clear. Instead of taking responsibility, the Election Commission offers vague denials. The truth is that the ECI has become complicit in a deliberate project of disenfranchisement.”

He further called out the “glaring double standards” of the Election Commission for asking for an affidavit under oath from Rahul Gandhi and not the BJP’s Anurag Thakur, even as both made similar allegations.

“When an opposition leader pointed out manipulations in Karnataka, he was asked to submit an affidavit under oath. But when a BJP leader made similar claims, no such proof was demanded. This is not impartial conduct—it is naked bias in favour of the ruling BJP. The referee is playing as a forward for the BJP and as a goalkeeper when the BJP’s deceit is questioned,” he said.

The CPI leader stated that a routine process of updating and publishing rolls had to be enforced through Supreme Court orders after petitions by opposition parties, including the CPI.

He highlighted the arbitrary exclusion of more than 65 lakh voters from the draft electoral roll in Bihar under the controversial Special Intensive Revision exercise.

“These are not just technical lapses; they amount to stripping citizens of their fundamental democratic right,” said Sandosh Kumar.

Sandosh Kumar also pointed out that Gyanesh Kumar is the first CEC who was appointed under the amended law that replaced the Chief Justice of India with a Union Minister in the three-member selection panel.

“It must be remembered that Gyanesh Kumar, the present Chief Election Commissioner, is the first CEC to be appointed under the 2023 Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment) Act, which handed complete control of appointments to the Union Government. The outcome is plain to see: the Commission is no longer an impartial referee; it is a partisan player, advancing the interests of the BJP,” he stated.

The CPI leader further warned that democracy itself is at stake if the Constitutional body meant to ensure a level playing field becomes the instrument of manipulation.

“The CPI demands full disclosure of irregularities, restoration of deleted names, and accountability for those who have defrauded citizens of their constitutional rights,” he added.